EDITORIAL - A department in dire need of reforms

Anniversaries are supposed to be happy events. But the 104th anniversary of the Department of Public Works and Highways today may only remind the nation about the sorry state of that agency that has consistently been listed as one of the most corrupt government offices.

The DPWH is still investigating reimbursements for vehicle repairs that have reached about P140 million for 2001 alone, with one official getting a whopping P50 million for one vehicle. Now comes a report from the Commission on Audit that 96 percent of the department’s assets, amounting to P160 billion, could not be accounted for, while P227 million in bank accounts could not be traced.

Even without audit reports and investigations of anomalies, signs of the department’s inefficiency are evident everywhere. Our roads are substandard; anyone who has been abroad and seen what a good road is will weep at the sight of our road network. Roads are dug up not so much to improve the pavement but to give someone a fat commission. Portions that are dug up then restored keep sinking. Our flood control program is a joke. The DPWH can’t even install a "smart" traffic light system that works in Metro Manila, even after millions of pesos in taxpayers’ money have been spent for the project.

Today the DPWH celebrates its anniversary with the theme Kaagapay sa Pagsugpo ng Kahirapan — meaning a partner in the fight against poverty. How you can vanquish poverty through corruption and mis-management of public funds is a mystery. There are some very unhappy, nervous officials in the DPWH as the department marks its founding day. Then again, if ongoing investigations lead to long-delayed reforms, the honest, hard-working members of the DPWH have cause for genuine celebration today.